Ellen (Slattery) Quandt

Ellen Quandt (née Slattery), age 82, of Kokomo, Indiana, passed away peacefully on Monday, January 23rd, 2023, with family at her side.

Ellen was born to Thomas and Esther (Spinner) Slattery on May 5th, 1940, in La Crosse, Wisconsin. She grew up in Waterville, Iowa, with her three brothers. She forged her own path at an early age finding a love for sports, nature, community, and living in the moment. She was fearless and pushed boundaries throughout her life. She excelled in basketball in high school at a time when women’s sports were uncommon. She was chosen as the high school senior prom queen, but she never once mentioned this to our families herself.

She was a 1962 graduate of the Saint Francis School of Nursing, where she met some of her closest and dearest friends and filled her free time with endless adventures. Her classmates described her as a class leader and an exceptional nurse. She worked as an operating room nurse in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and later in Kokomo for many years.

Ellen worked hard and played even harder, and she never missed a party. She very much lived in the moment and would travel anywhere on a moment's notice. She was known to take a downhill ski trip whether or not friends could join her. One of her favorite memories was being told by her mother that she couldn’t go skydiving at age seventeen; once she turned eighteen she went without asking. In those days women didn’t skydive often, so she looked ridiculous in a pack that was for someone at least twice her size! 

Ellen met her future husband Charles at a party in Milwaukee with mutual friends. On March 7, 1975, Charles and Ellen got married in Milwaukee in a private ceremony in the largest cathedral that they could find, only inviting their small wedding party. They settled into their lifelong home on the Green Acres Golf Course where they developed a loving and supportive community and raised a family with son Brian and daughter Andrea.

There were no strangers in Ellen's life. She made friends quickly and fostered lifelong friendships. She was an even better mother than she was a friend. She instilled her sense of fierce independence and adventure in her children. She understood the importance of listening and making others feel heard, only offering advice when it was requested. Even as a new grandmother, she patiently supported each new crazy parenting idea without judgment. 

Ellen was always the first to volunteer for anything when she saw a need: each and every school activity, manning the gift shop at church, delivering food to homebound individuals for the Meals on Wheels program in Kokomo, helping to run the neighborhood swimming pool, or filling in as emergency childcare for anyone in the neighborhood. Ellen even put her nursing background to use as she was called upon by numerous friends and neighbors and family members to treat any number of maladies. 

Ellen did almost everything in her life fast. She drove fast. Played euchre fast. Read books fast. Played golf fast. She even liked to brag that on long trips she could manage switching drivers in the car without pulling over just to get to the destination more quickly.

Ellen never skipped an opportunity to travel or experience something new. Sometimes that meant travel plans laid out months in advance; other times it meant hopping in a car without any reservations and just going. She explored Europe with friends and her mother as a young adult. She later returned with Charles. With their children they traveled to Ireland, Canada, and Mexico and saw most of the United States. As an empty-nester, they took many cruises in Europe, South America, Alaska, and Hawaii with friends. Her passion for exploring the world will live on with her children and grandchildren.

Ellen was an avid reader and never went anywhere without a few books to read. Especially in the days before smartphones, she’d fill every spare second of the day enthralled in novel after novel. Whether she was waiting for her daughter during gymnastics practice, picking up her son from swimming practice, or waiting in line at the bank, she was always reading a book. When her children were especially fussy in the car, she would even pull over to the side of the road and resume reading a book until the argument ceased. She took great joy in teaching her children to read and took them to the library so often it felt like a second home.

Ellen also loved the theater and would regularly see shows with her family or her friends at Havens Auditorium, Indiana Repertory Theatre, Beef & Boards Dinner Theater, and Frankfort’s Red Barn Summer Theatre.

Ellen had a witty and sarcastic sense of humor; she loved making people just uncomfortable enough for them to come out of their shells wondering if she was serious. Occasionally she’d sit down at a restaurant and ask a complete stranger if they liked their meal. If they seemed to roll with it, she’d sometimes even ask the person if she could have a bite of their dessert! While battling cancer, she once decided to take off her wig during the middle of a meal at a restaurant. She dryly told everyone it was because she was getting warm and thought it would help her cool off, but the look she gave when retelling the story made it clear she enjoyed getting reactions from people.

Her humor extended to how she raised her kids. When they were young, the family would take trips to Indianapolis to do shopping. She’d take the family to Toys”R”Us but would tell the kids that it’s a “toy museum” and that they couldn’t buy anything because then there wouldn’t be any toys left for other kids to come see. Her kids believed that longer than they should have, but absolutely love sharing that story with their own kids now.

In 2020, Charles and Ellen moved to Michigan to be closer to family and caregiving. They enjoyed spending extra time with family and being involved in the daily lives of their grandchildren. Ellen helped teach all the grandkids to play euchre and make banana bread properly. Friends and former neighbors showered them with cards, well wishes, and phone calls which helped a great deal, but they still did miss their Green Acres home and community. The move to Michigan did afford Charles and Ellen the chance to spend more peaceful time at the lake and some less peaceful time surrounded by granddaughters.

Ellen's fearlessness, unconditional love, and sense of adventure will live on with all of the lives she has touched throughout her life. 

Ellen is survived by her son Brian (Tracy) Quandt of Westfield, Indiana, and daughter Andrea (Matthew) Aagesen of Ann Arbor, Michigan; brother Donald (Marilyn) Slattery of Orlando, Florida, and sister-in-law Clare Slattery of Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She is also survived by five granddaughters: Avery and Emerson Quandt; Payton, Ella, and Charlotte Aagesen. Ellen also is survived by numerous nieces, nephews and other relatives and friends.

Ellen was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Charles, and her brothers Thomas and Joseph.

Friends are invited to visit with the family from 11:30 am to 1:30 pm Saturday April 22, 2023, at Stout & Son Funeral Home, 200 East Main Street, Russiaville, IN 46979. A joint memorial service for Ellen and her husband Charles will begin at 1:30 pm on Saturday April 22, 2023, at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that you make a donation to the American Red Cross (https://www.redcross.org/donate/donation.html/) in her name. Messages of condolence may be left online at www.stoutandson.com.

To send flowers to the family, please visit our floral store.